Chapter Three
Earth Seventy-Four
8:52 A.M.
Clark bounded down the stairs and into the kitchen. A couple of years ago he would have been greeted by the warm smell of bacon and eggs cooking on the stove while his mom ran around the kitchen. This morning, though, the house was empty except for him. His mom was in Metropolis for the next couple of days to prepare for a fundraiser. Her life had gotten a lot busier since she had taken on the mantle of state senator in his father's place. But she was good at it. And Clark could tell that she really enjoyed it.
In the meantime, the upkeep of the family farm had fallen into his hands. He had never had any desire to become a farmer. As a matter of fact there were a couple of occasions where he had told his dad that he had no interest in taking up the family yoke. He wanted to do something more with his life. He had an origin that was uniquely different from the rest of humanity. He had been sent to this world as the sole survivor of a dead world. He could not believe that his ancestors would want there only legacy to be worried with fence mending and hay bailing.
But, even though he was Kal-El of Krypton, he was a Kent first. At least that was the priority that he held in his mind. And he knew that being a Kent was something special as well. People in the community looked up to his family. Jonathan Kent had been a hard working, decent, honest, and caring man. And that kind of life had a way of lingering with people.
Clark opened a box of cereal and poured himself a bowl. He added the milk and leaned back against the counter to eat it. He glanced at the clock on the wall. It was nearly nine o'clock. He had promised Chloe that he would meet her for lunch in Metropolis. He still had plenty of time. He knew that he should probably take the truck, but he could run into the city in just a few minutes.
He sighed. Chloe had said that she just wanted to meet with him to talk. He had not seen her in nearly a week. That was when they had returned from the mirror universe where he had met Lucas Luthor, the alternate version of himself that had been raised by Lionel Luthor. When they had gotten home she had barely wanted to talk to him. She said something about being in the same apartment where their alternate selves were making love had weirded her out. He supposed that he could understand. He had given her the space that she needed and now she wanted to see him. She could say that she just wanted to talk, but he knew that she wanted one of two things. She either wanted to know what the latest word was from Green Arrow, or she wanted to hound him into stopping Lex and Lana's wedding. Neither of which he was in the mood to talk about.
What he did want to do was to go back to LuthorCorp and talk to Professor Hamilton. When they had crossed back into this dimension the professor had taken the serum that Chloe had given him and injected Clark without any question. It had saved Clark's life, just like it had the first time that he had taken it. But he had spent the next few days tormented over the fate of Lucas. His double in that world was a dangerous man. He had killed and rampaged to advance his own agenda, which Clark supposed would have eventually led to world domination. But something had stayed with him after Lucas had sacrificed himself to save him. He had some memories that had belonged to Lucas, including the things that he was thinking about at the moment that he had vanished. At the moment of his disappearance he was not thinking about vengeance or death at all. He was only thinking about perseverance. He wanted to help. It could possibly be the only time that those sorts of thoughts had gone through his mind in his entire life.
Something else had weighed on him during the past few days. When he lay down at night to rest and he closed his eyes, he seemed to see a vast expanse of dark blue clouds. In the distance he could almost see the outline of thousands of planets that all looked like Earth. And he could not feel his own body. It was almost as if he himself was one of the clouds that he saw. Then he would wake up, and he had not even realized that he had been asleep. He had had dreams before that had frightened him, but this one was different in so many ways. The main thing that disturbed him was that the feeling that he got while he was having it was the same one that he had gotten the night that his mind had merged with Lucas'.
He washed the bowl quickly and walked outside. He decided to take the truck to Metropolis. It was a nice morning and he did not really mind taking the extra time. He figured that he would still get to town early.
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"I knew that you were going to hit me with this," Clark said, feigning annoyance. His smile showed that he was glad that Chloe cared about him so much.
"Clark," she said. "You two belong together. It was meant to be. You're like Romeo and Juliet. Clark Kent and Lana Lang are meant for one another. The universe has spoken."
They had met at the Daily Planet and walked down the street together to a diner that was full of people. The downtown lunch crowd in Metropolis was always huge. Clark hoped that there was enough bustle in the room that no one would overhear their conversation. He kept an ear out to hear if anyone commented on anything that they were saying. When the waitress came he ordered a tuna sandwich and chips and Chloe ordered a salad and water. She left and he responded to her comment.
"That's not the way I see it, Chloe," he said. "What about what we saw last week? Lex wound up with her over there, too."
"But in that world he was the white bread farm boy," she said. "And he was still the Kent son. Maybe she's destined to be with whoever is playing that role."
"What do you want me to do, Chloe?" Clark asked. "Walk in there next weekend and wait for the minister to do the whole speak now or forever hold your peace deal? What then? I just jump up and say 'Don't marry Lex'?"
"That's a perfect plan," Chloe said with a smile. "Actually, what I was thinking was that you simply have a little talk with her. Maybe you could tell her a few secrets that you've been keeping from her?"
"You want me to tell Lana my secret?" Clark asked.
"Why not, Clark?" she replied. "It's not like she's some stranger. You've been in love with her your entire life."
Clark nodded. "I guess I just still have that weariness of telling anybody that my dad instilled in me."
"It's good to keep it close to home," Chloe replied. "If the wrong person found out it could ruin your life. The government would love to get their hands on a real live alien."
"Don't call me that," Clark said, his voice low and his eyes looking away from her. Chloe could tell that she had hurt his feelings.
"I didn't mean it like that, Clark," she said. "I'm sorry."
"It's okay," he replied. "I guess it's true. But if I told Lana who I really was, wouldn't I be risking Lex finding out as well?"
"You don't think that she'd tell him?" Chloe asked.
"She could," he replied. "I've lied to her enough over the years. Maybe she puts more trust in Lex now than she does me."
"That's ridiculous," Chloe said. "She still loves you. If she didn't then she wouldn't care so much."
"Not to mention the fact that if I told her that I came to Earth during the meteor shower then she might blame me for the death of her parents."
"Clark," Chloe said. "You came with the meteors. You didn't make them. And you're doing nothing more than making excuses. Are you sure that you don't want to tell her because of how she might react? Or are you just afraid of making a commitment to her?"
"I've already hurt her so many times, Chloe."
She nodded. "The wedding is in a week, Clark. Don't wait too long. You just might regret it for the rest of your life. And we have no idea how long your life span is."
Clark smiled at her. The waitress returned with their food and they sat chewing in silence for several minutes. He finally spoke up.
"Do you want to talk about it?" he asked.
She swallowed and then took in a gulp of water. "Talk about what?"
"About why you've been avoiding me for a week," he said.
"I haven't been avoiding you. I've been busy."
"You've never been too busy for your friends."
She nodded and set down her glass. "That was a pretty big ordeal."
"Right," Clark said with a slight nod. "But I'm the one that rescued you. It doesn't make any sense that you didn't want to talk to me when we got back. Whatever our alternate versions' relationship was, it shouldn't affect our's. They're our doubles but that doesn't mean that they're us."
"I know that, Clark," she said. "But you know that I've had a crush on you for years. It's only been a few months since I started seeing Jimmy and I'm finally starting to get over those feelings."
"I understand," Clark said. "And you know that I care about you a great deal."
"But only as a friend," Chloe said. "I know."
"You're my best friend," Clark said. "You're the most important person in my life right now."
"I know," Chloe said. "But you just don't know what it's like to hear your own voice as your double is making love to someone that you know so well."
"There are billions of worlds in the multiverse," Clark said. "You and I may be married on some of them and we may not even know one another on others. But on this one, we know what we mean to each other."
She nodded. "I'm sorry that I've been giving you the cold shoulder. You know that I wasn't mad or anything. I really do appreciate what you did for me. You nearly died to come and bring me back to this world."
"I'd do anything for you," Clark said. "You know that. Right?" She nodded again. He could see a tear starting to well up in her eye and he decided to change the subject. "Have you been able to get hold of Professor Hamilton?"
"Yes," she replied. "But I don't think that his priority is on repairing his projector and modifying it to look for Lucas."
"Why not?" Clark said. "That machine is a major discovery for a scientist of his level. It could make him huge. What could possibly be more important to him?"
"You," Chloe said.
Clark stared at her in confusion. "What do you mean?"
"Did you tell him about your kryptonite weakness?" Chloe asked.
Clark's heart sank. "I told him that I was allergic to the meteor rocks. I had to or I would have been killed when I crossed over. The energy that the projector put out was charged with raw energy from the rocks."
"I know," she replied. "And he knows that the rocks have caused mutations in people in and around Smallville. But you're the first one to have a weakness to their radiation. He's been doing all sorts of experiments and coming up with theories as to why your cells react to their proximity."
"Are any of his theories close to the truth?" Clark asked.
"Yeah," Chloe said. "But not any that he's leaning toward."
"I had a feeling that this would happen," he said. "But I had no choice."
"I know," Chloe said. "And I really doubt that he'll do anything with the information. After all, he works for Lionel Luthor, and he's kept your secret for over a year."
"Yeah," Clark said. "But I really don't know what his ultimate goal is. I still believe that he's trying to stay close to my mom because he wants a senator in his pocket. Imagine if I become a costumed vigilante like Green Arrow one day. He'd probably like having a superhero in his pocket, too."
Chloe laughed. "I can imagine you running around in some skin tight outfit saving kittens from trees. Would you have a cape?"
"I'm being serious," Clark said. And then he started to laugh. "Maybe I'd call myself the Kryptonian Avenger."
"Or Superguy," Chloe replied. They both laughed. After they finished their lunch they argued briefly over who was going to pay the check. Clark won, even though Chloe did say that she was the one that invited him. He stepped over to the counter and paid. They walked outside together and said their goodbyes and Clark climbed back into his truck.
"Where are you going now?" Chloe said. "Back to the farm?"
"I was thinking about heading over to LuthorCorp and have a little chat with Hamilton," Clark said.
"Clark, that's not a good idea," Chloe said. "There are no security cameras in the lab. If you get into an argument with him he could say that you did something to him and it would be your word against his." He nodded and sighed. "Why don't you call Luthor?"
"Lionel Luthor?" Clark asked. "But I told you that…"
"Whatever he may or may not be planning for some point in the future can be dealt with at that time. But right now he may be able to get Hamilton off of your trail. The professor is a good man, Clark. I don't believe that he would exploit you no matter what he found."
"I know that," Clark said. "But I'm afraid that someone else could see his research and they might exploit me."
"Be careful," Chloe said. "By the way, why did you drive? You could have run here in like three minutes."
"It's a nice day, Chloe," Clark said with a smile as he started up the truck. A few seconds later it was rumbling back toward Smallville.
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When the truck pulled into the driveway Clark immediately noticed that the front door to the house was open a few inches. He climbed out and quickly scanned the building with his x-ray vision. There was no sign of anyone inside. He looked around the rest of the area and saw three human skeletons crouched behind some hay bails in the barn. They looked like some pretty big guys.
"Who's in there?" he yelled. None of them moved. He stepped closer to the barn and called out again. "I know that someone's there! Come out, now!"
The three figures stood up and ran forward, directly toward the barn's wall. The wall exploded into splinters of wood and nails that came raining down all around him. He instinctively covered his head even though he knew that the falling debris could not hurt him. When he looked up again he saw three men, each wearing a white skin tight suit that was all in one piece. They looked a lot like something that a scuba diver would wear. But their clothing was far from being the most unusual thing about the men's appearance. Each and every one of them looked as if they were an exact double of him. It was almost as if he were looking into three mirrors.
"Who are you?" he asked.
"Are you Clark Kent?" the one on the left asked. It was strange to hear the words in his own voice.
"Yeah," Clark replied.
"Target identified," one of the others said. He zipped forward at super speed, but Clark dodged to his left and left the other man grasping at thin air. He balled up his fist and leaned in toward him. His punch connected with the invaders jaw and sent him hurling through the air. Immediately he felt like a brick wall had hit him in the back. One of the other doubles had run at him and shoved his shoulder into his back. Clark went down, his face scraping the dirt.
"Adam," one of them said. The first one that had spoken looked up as if responding to his name. "Do not hurt the target."
"I will not, Caleb," he replied. He turned to Clark. "We do not wish to hurt you. You must come with us."
"I'm not going anywhere," Clark said. "What are you? Are you doubles from a parallel world?"
"We can not answer your questions, Clark Kent," Adam said. "Come with us and all will be explained."
Clark got back on his feet and sucker punched Adam in the stomach. The man bent over in pain. Clark cracked him in the face with his knee and he fell over onto the ground, clutching his nose that was pouring blood. He heard one of the others running up behind him. He whirled around and kicked into the air. His foot made contact with Caleb's chest. Clark felt a gust of wind come out of the man's lungs as he, too, fell to the ground. Clark turned to face the last one.
"Brice!" Adam called out. "Use it!"
"We were told that it would be difficult to acquire you," Brice told Clark. "We did not wish to use this." He reached behind him and pulled out a small box. He opened it and Clark did not have to see the meteor rock to know what it was. He felt the burning and the nausea that he had experience on a number of occasions. He fell to the ground. He looked around as Adam and Caleb got up and joined the one that they had called Brice. The rock was not affecting them at all. However much they looked like him, they were obviously not his exact double. They were immune to the rocks effects.
Brice reached into his belt and pulled out another device. He leveled it at Clark and pressed a button. There was a short whistling noise followed by a dull thud. Clark looked down and saw a tiny dart sticking out of his chest. Connected to the needle was a vial with a green liquid that quickly emptied itself into his body. Almost immediately Clark lost all feeling in his entire body. He was still fully conscious, but he could not move, not even to speak. "I have injected you with a powerful neurotoxin laced with kryptonite. You will be unable to resist us any further."
Adam and Caleb looked down at Clark and nodded. Caleb pulled his foot back and made as if he were about to kick him in the ribs. Adam put out his hand.
"Stop, brother," he said. "The fight is over." Caleb withdrew himself and calmed down. Adam turned back to the barn and pressed a button on his belt buckle. There was a strand of shimmering energy that came out of it and collected in mid-air in front of them. It formed a circle which quickly turned into a hole in the air. There was a roaring sound coming from within the hole and the wind picked up, almost as if it were trying to pull things toward it. Adam motioned to the other two and they walked near the hole. When they had gotten close enough to put their arm through it they seemed to shrink in size and allow themselves to be sucked inside. "Do not worry, Clark Kent of Earth Seventy-Four. We will not hurt you unless we are ordered to do so."
That did not make him feel much better. He had never felt this helpless before. Even the times that he had lost his powers he had still been able to do things. He could not move at all and it was terrifying.
Adam picked him up and threw him over his shoulder. Together they went through the hole and out of this world.
End of chapter three.
Note:
I hope everyone is enjoying the story so far. This may turn out to be a pretty long fic because of the fact that there are two stories going on here. In the next chapter we'll find out what happened to Lucas and Anya. Please r&r…I love getting reviews, even if they are anonymous. And don't get your hope up for a happy ending. Remember that this is part two of a three part series. Everyone knows the rule about act 2 of a trilogy. Anyway, until next time.
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